High School Grail Wars: The Nobody & the Knight
by bamafelix
Summary: Moon Cell Academy was where everything would start for Kishinami Hakuno. Just when he thinks things can't get any worse on his first day, he meets a girl name Mordred and the journey to being a great Master begins. Mistakes, enemies, and friends will be made and secrets will be revealed on his journey from third-rate to stardom.
1. Chapter 1: Welcome To Moon Cell Academy

******Yep...this is inspired by Highschool of Heroes! It's a good story and the only thing I have to say about it is the length of time between each update...but everybody's got stuff goin on in their lives so I'll give him a break. I really liked that story so he gets a pass. I also give passes to my buddies who are also writers for taking so long because inspiration comes and goes for every writer. I sometimes just write off the top of my head...  
**

**I've been planning and planning and I've finally gotten it done. There are several people whom I would love to thank for helping me develop this story:**

**wolfy1.29.13**

**DarkAkatsuk1**

**KingofZeroX**

**And...damn. I've been working on it for so long, I've forgotten all of the people who I've spoken to it about.**

**OK, so to the people who I've spoken to about and know I have, this is to you: Thank you so much~!**

**I hope you all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except OC's who may appear at a later point.**

**Chapter 1:**

**Welcome to Moon Cell Academy**

"Shit! Damn damn damn!"

I quickly shot out of my bed after reading what the clock said. It was 7:45!

I was really going to be late!

I jumped off my mattress and ran into the bathroom in order to take a quick shower and change. It was a crazy fast shower with boiling hot water.

I couldn't focus on the pain of hot water because I was going to be late! I threw on my brown school uniform quickly and brushed my somewhat messy brown hair. I stared at my reflection in its brown eyes which matched mine.

I quickly ran out of the bathroom and grabbed a backpack I had on the chair by the desk holding my computer along with a red-colored envelope. I DEFINITELY couldn't forget that!

After that, I was gone, I almost tripped over my pet cat, Yuki, but I made it through the door without incident and I ended up running through the streets like a crazy person.

"No no no no no! Of all days, I can't be late today!" I shouted to myself...or maybe the world. I wasn't too sure.

According to a famous person, Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg, there were numerous of impossible seeming things out there. The man himself traveled through dimensions so casually! So thinking the world was actually listening to what I said wasn't too unbelievable.

Oh right! Forgot to introduce myself!

The name's Hakuno Kishinami. I'm 18 years old and I live by myself not including my cat. Sad, ain't it?

I've been told that in terms of skill and reputation, I was horribly unremarkable. That was something usually looked down upon in Tsukumihara City, where people like me are judged terribly by such things. We're supposed to be the best we can be and preserve the way of our kind.

By 'our kind', I meant-

**BOOOM!**

I was interrupted as a nearby building exploded right in the center, two incredibly fast figured jumping through the debris of the building they just destroyed. Servants.

_Damn_, I thought to myself. _I must've wandered into a barrier field._

I quickly picked up the pace as to avoid getting drawn into the conflict.

Barrier fields were often used between two magi and their Servant partners when engaging in exhibition battles in broad daylight.

Oh yeah. Magi (or Magus if it's one person).

I am one of them. Not very skilled or well-known, but I am one of many people confirmed to at least possess a minimum amount of magic potential to be qualified as a Magus.

Magi are people who possess things known as 'Magic Circuits'. In this world, there are many people with varying amount of magic circuits. I also possess them, but they have rather low quality. Using these magic circuits, Magi are able to cast a variety of spells and do things that surpass normal human limitations. They use these powers to fight, discover, and create.

That is why most people would not believe I was invited into Moon Cell Academy, one of the most prestigious schools for training magi into Masters.

You see, in this place, we have something known as the Holy Grail War.

No. We don't fight over an actual Holy Grail, but rather, Magi who are designated as 'Masters' team up with powerful heroes, usually their fellow students, who become their 'Servants' and form 'contracts', creating a nearly unbreakable bond between to two of them. They fight one another in either exhibition matches or organized tournaments of sorts in order to increase their 'rank' in the World Grail War Ranking system and gain more renown and prestige. That is the purpose of these schools like the Moon Cell: To train the Masters and Servants of the future and allow them to rise through the ranks.

Getting into a school like Moon Cell Academy is usually difficult. You usually either have to be incredibly skilled or have friends in high places. You could tell which one I was.

Through hard work and a lot of studying, I was able to pass the entrance exam. This didn't make too many people happy that a 'low-class magus' had gotten in. But I did.

The red envelope in my hand said so. My acceptance letter.

Of course I would have a few issues.

Some people made contact with people who qualified to be Servants, but I had not such contacts. I was horribly ordinary with no kind of super power or anything. I was going to have to wait until I arrived at the Start of the Year ceremony and try and find a partner there.

I heard another explosion from the battle behind me.

Barrier fields created a small pocket dimension where Masters and Servants could really go all out without affecting to real world. People never died in these Holy Grail battles due to a special system devised by the creator of the Grail War. Once a specific amount of damage is inflicted upon either the Master or Servant, they are declared to be defeated and transported to a special medical zone. This was to prevent people from bringing murderous grudges into the Grail War which was meant to be a 'friendly' competition without bloodshed.

I know it was stupid for someone like me to become a Master when there are people like those of the famous Tohsaka and Einzbern families. The Matou family is also well-known, but they started on a very sharp decline after the death of the previous head, Zouken Matou...nobody expressed any loss. I'd...heard things. Horrible things.

The reason why I wanted to become a Master so badly so I could become great like my father. I'd never met the guy before, but my mother told me he was a great Master before he died. He was a professional Master, taking part in big tournaments all across the world! She never told me his name though.

I had always wished I asked more about him before her death last year. It...That was something I didn't like to think about.

And that was why I was running. Certain higher-up magi want any excuse they can to keep the blood of the high-class magi 'pure' and prevent me from becoming a Master. No matter where you went, prejudice towards low-class magi was always present.

I was so focused on avoiding the explosions of the battle that I had failed to watch where I was running, causing me to slam into some poor sap who was in front of me, sending us both tumbling onto the ground.

Once we both painfully hit the ground, I quickly jumped back to my feet, brushing myself off and bowing to the person I knocked over.

"Watch where you're going!" It was a girl.

I bowed my head over and over again. "I'm sorry! I am so very sorry, but I'm in a hurry!"

The girl I had run into had a slender figure as well as green eyes and blonde hair tied back in a pony tail. She wore an unzipped red jacket over a short, white tube top and jeans that had had the legs ripped off. She was currently scowling at me, clearly angry about me knocking her over. She clicked her tongue, clearly annoyed at how pathetic I looked.

"Whatever. Just go."

"Ah! Thank you!" I immediately ran past her, but I could still feel her gaze burning into the back of my skull. At the back of my mind, I couldn't help but feel that she looked familiar.

But that was unimportant at the moment. It was 7:53 and I had 7 minutes to get to the Academy before I was late.

I couldn't be late on the first day! Not only would it be bad, but lame as well!

And so I kept running.

It wasn't long before Moon Cell Academy became visible before me. It was an average-looking school building and most people would never believe it was a school to train Master and Servants. But really, all of the battle arenas are underground in order to prevent damage to the school building. Below the ground is where the fun takes place. Other than that, there was only one thing noticeable about the school:

The seemingly infinite amount of goddamn stairs!

Great. I have five minutes and I have at least a thousand stairs to go up!

I once again ran up the stairs at the fastest speed I could move.

"NO WAY IN HELL WILL I BE LATE!" Step after step they came. I overcame all of them as fast as I could. I literally jumped when I reached that top step.

In hindsight, that was a bad idea.

"OOMF!" When I came over the top, I ended up slamming right into somebody, knocking them over.

I winced as I hit the ground, rubbing my aching head. "S-Sorry about that."

"N-No. It was my fault." It was the voice of a girl. I hoped this wouldn't turn into a bad habit for me. "I-I should have been watching where I was going."

"Er, considering I was the one walking behind you, that would be my line." My vision stopped being blurry and I was able to get a good look at the girl in front of me. "I mean-" My voice trailed off as I got a good look at her.

She was a beautiful young woman just about my age, perhaps a little bit younger. Her eyes and hair were both a violet color and her hair was styled with a ribbon on the left side an she wore what was apparently the female uniform of Moon Cell Academy. I felt bad about my eye looking there, but I couldn't help but notice she wasn't exactly lacking when it came to her chest.

Overall: BEAUTIFUL! I could SWEAR that sparkles and flowers were floating in the background behind her!

Not to mention her legs...Her skirt had ridden up her waist a little bit, revealing her beautiful, smooth legs...

I think I have a bit of a leg fetish.

"-right?"

"Huh?" I then realized that I had been staring at the girl for several awkward minutes. I quickly stood up, bowing in apology. "O-Oh. S-Sorry!" I held out my hand to her, trying to forget my previous shameful thoughts regarding-

She grabbed my hand and I helped her back up to her feet. "I really am sorry though."

The beautiful girl shook her head. "It's no problem really."

"Well, I-"

DING-DONG! DING-DONG! DING-DONG!

I immediately froze in place at the sound of the school bell. The girl did as well.

"Oh-!"

"-shit!" I quickly tightened my grasp on her hand and started running again. "No time for introductions! We gotta go!"

"Huh?! W-Wait!"

And then we were off.

* * *

**Moon Cell Academy Auditorium...**

Me and my violet-haired friend just barely made it inside the auditorium doors before they shut.

We started panting after the long run from the stairs and then running around trying to find the auditorium.

"That...was close."

Further inside the auditorium, I could hear the chatter of all of the students having gathered for the opening ceremony.

The violet-haired girl nodded. "Um...It's been nice meeting yo-Eh?" She looked around, but I was already crawling down the aisle between various seats, trying not to be seen by other students as I made my way to an empty seat.

Dodging several pairs of feet, I eventually located one in the middle of one of the rows. I carefully stood up to a crouch and turned to the guy next to me.

"Is this seat taken?"

He looked like he was my age. He had curly blue hair and gray blue eyes. He himself wore the male uniform of Moon Cell Academy and wore an expression that said 'I'd rather be anywhere but this boring place'. When he looked down at me, he smirked to himself smugly.

"Well I suppose since I'm a nice guy, I should let even a cretin like you have a seat somewhere." He spoke with a smug tone of voice.

I nodded. "Thanks. I was a little late and-"

He clicked his tongue leaning back in his chair with his previous bored expression. "Don't care. I said you could sit, not bore me."

"Alrighty then."

I had the feeling we were going to be good friends.

There was a loud tapping on the microphone. A man had walked behind the podium with a microphone on the stage in front of everybody. He was dressed like some kind of priest or something, but I didn't like something about him. He seemed kinda like a FAKE priest somehow.

"Attention. My name is Kirei Kotomine, soon-to-be one of your teachers and director of the Arena. I would like you all to become silent and welcome the Headmaster, my father, Risei Kotomine." Kirei moved away from the podium and bowed as a much more aged man who looked more like a priest than the other man took the stage.

He seemed to scan the room with half-closed eyes and a warm-hearted smile on his face.

"Hello and welcome, students, to Moon Cell Academy. You come here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft, and acquire new skills. When you have finished, you plan on proving your worth to the world, but I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time here will prove knowledge can only carry you so far. For every noble aspiration, there is an evil needed to be surmounted before you can reach what it is you desire. A conflict. You have all come from various backgrounds and households, but you will all learn only one thing here; the only enemy you have to face is yourself, and that your greatest conflict rests within your own soul. I look forward to watching you meet that challenge."

I stared at the Headmaster with admiration. Each and every one of his words were genuine and honest.

"So to end this welcoming ceremony, allow me to say it once more, young magi. On behalf of myself and all of the teachers: Welcome to Moon Cell Academy!" He bowed his head. "Thank you."

With his silence, the entire room erupted into applause for the wonderful speech I think nobody clapped harder than me. It was so awe-inspiring and I very well intended to surpass myself and my own conflicts.

"Bo-ring." I shot a slightly annoyed look at the blue-haired guy beside me. I doubt he listened to a single word to what the Headmaster said. "Jeez. Like anyone believes a word of that. Only people with high status ever become good Masters. I actually pity the losers who have to cram all day just to get into the academy."

I sighed. I noticed that they had started dismissing the students, having made some announcement about class schedules.

"Once again, let me repeat, students. Please report to the main hall to receive your tag. These tags will identify each of you as a 'Master' or 'Servant' candidate respectively. I would prefer that each of you find a chosen partner for the semester to come before the end of the month."

The guy next to me brushed himself off, standing from his chair. "Well, not that this hasn't been fun, but my employ-I mean 'partner' should be waiting for me." He then left, leaving me with the impression that deep down he was a very empty and sad person with a superiority complex.

I sighed again. "Great. Time to find a partner who will pair up with a low-class rookie like me."

I followed the crowds out of the auditorium and back into the main hall. It was huge and horribly overwhelming.

After walking up to the front desk and getting a tag that read "Hello. I'm a Master", I began to look around the room. Various magi and people who I assumed to be Servant candidates were casually talking to one another. Sports, contracts, weapons, stuff like that. Many of them have already formed contracts and the number of people I could beg to become my Servant were beginning to dwindle.

Many of the assembled students had formed contracts ahead of time. Some of the more wealthy families had paid for the Servant partner the Master had received while others just have better charisma than me.

I was royally screwed if I couldn't find a partner within the first month of school.

"Oh, good to see you again."

I jumped before quickly turning around, raising my arms in self-defense. "Oh, it's you." It was the polite violet-haired girl I had oh so clumsily bumped into previously.

She smiled kindly. "I really should be thanking you. I was almost late and Onii-sama would've been angry."

I felt myself blushing slightly at her thanks. "I-I didn't really do anything. Grabbing you was just a reflex because I didn't want to be late. My name's Kishinami Hakuno."

"Matou Sakura. I'm glad we can properly introduce ourselves, Kishinami-senpai." I smiled.

There was a long pause as wind blew through the halls.

Matou...

"...'Matou'?" Matou-san nodded. "Like...the guys who are also known as Makiri?" Another nod. "Like one of the Three Great Families 'MATOU'?"

"Yes."

My jaw dropped.

This girl was a member of one of the Three Great Families! They were the ones who created the Grail War system! Any member of any family could buy AND sell me! They had such powerful political pull and even with the recent rumors regarding the Matou family, there was no doubt that they still held quite a bit of power! And forget about magical ability!

I began to sweat profusely.

OK, Hakuno, think quick! Find a way out of this situation!

Matou-san looked to her left and nodded. "Oh. That's right. I should go pick up our class schedule."

To any other observer, it would appear that she was talking to an imaginary friend. But magi were well aware of a Servant's ability to enter a type of astral form. When in this form, they are pretty much invisible except to those with powerful observation skills. They also recover from injuries much more easily. Only people assigned under the title of 'Servant' are allowed to use this form in school as to prevent it from being used for nefarious (if not hilarious) purposes.

Matou-san bowed to me. "It has been nice meeting you, Senpai, but I have to leave so I can get the schedule for those with a Rider-class Servant." She then turned around and walked away

Ah yes. I almost forgot.

I looked around at all of my surrounding fellow students.

Due to the various abilities of many of the powerful Servant students, they were separated into seven 'Classes' (both a title and actual educational schedule). There was "Saber" which consisted of Servants who specialized in using swords, "Lancer" which consisted of those who specialized in wielding lances and spears, and "Archer" which consisted of people who prefer long-ranged attacks, typically using a bow-type weapon. These were known as the three "Knight Classes". Most of the people in these three classes were extremely powerful.

There were four other classes as well. There's the valiant "Rider" class. This class is reserved for those who possess a sort of mount of vehicle to fight upon. One of the greatest Servants, Alexander the Great, once partnered with the brilliant professor, Waver Velvet, and were so powerful that they earned the numbered Rank of 18. Considering that the top 8 strongest Master/Servant pairs aren't considered human (excluding the clearly human Rank 1 champion), that would make them just about Rank 10 by human standards.

Then there was Berserker. This class was reserved for the guys who have some sort of anger issues and usually huge muscles that make all of us smaller people feel so much more insignificant. The motto of the Berserker class is 'Kill first, ask questions later'.

Then came Caster. They specialized in various fields of magecraft. It's rare, but it IS possible for a normal magus to train and become powerful enough to become a Servant of this class. So this is one of the few times that a normal, human without heroic blood can be anything other than a Master.

Then the weakest of the weak: Assassin class. They were still stronger than normal humans, but Servants of this class usually failed at everything but team battles or varying tournaments. They were more for reconnaissance and striking at the Masters from the shadows. In all-out combat, they were usually the first to go down.

So there were seven different curricular plans to satisfy the requirements of teaching all seven Servant Classes.

GAH! I got sidetracked! None of that information will matter to me if I don't find a person to be my Servant!

OK, now where to start.

...

By the time ten minutes was up, I was on the ground, feeling hopeless. I asked just about every Servant in the room, but all of them either weren't interested or already had a partner.

"Well if it isn't the loser from the next seat!" I looked up to see the same blue-haired guy from before, this time with two girls standing on either side of him. He looked like he was enjoying himself. "I'd ask 'How's the weather down there?', but that's beneath me. Don't feel bad though, some people like you who rely only on their stupid brains aren't meant to be Masters." He wrapped each of his arms around both girls' waists and walked away, no doubt continuing to gloat to himself.

I was screwed!

"Show some pride why don't you?" I looked to my right to see a girl with her hands on her hips and an annoyed look on her face.

She had long and wavy black hair, which she styled into twintails tied with black ribbons and had blue eyes. She wore a red turtleneck, a black skirt, and long black socks along with brown shoes. Her hands on her hips and the expression on her face gave me the distinct feeling she was upset with me.

"Erm...Good morning?"

Her expression only showed more annoyance. "Why exactly are you on the ground?"

"I was laying in despair at the fact that I will never find a Servant partner."

She seemed taken aback by my bluntness. "W-Well, you're a magus, so have a bit more dignity. It embarrasses not only you but those around you."

"Well I don't exactly have a very high standing so I don't think people have very high hopes for me." I laughed awkwardly. "I'm one of the guys who got by purely by cramming like there's no tomorrow, hehehe. I mean, without my entrance letter, I doubt they would let me stay her lo-Eh?"

The girl raised an eyebrow. "What?"

I pulled my hand from the insides of my jacket. I then began reaching into each and every one my pockets, my panic only increasing with each passing moment.

"No no no no no no NO NO!" He began to seriously freak out, scanning the floor around me. "Where is it?! Where is it?!"

"Where is what?"

"My acceptance letter! Where is it?!" I was seriously freaking out!

There was a noise as the intercom came on. "A reminder to all students: In order to be certified as a registered student and receive your schedule, you must provide the passcode delivered in your acceptance letters and exchange it with the teacher at the Registry Desk."

"Eek!" I squeaked. "NO NO NO! Where is it?! Did I drop it somewhere?!"

"Hey, are-"

"Sorry! Can't talk now! Gotta go, miss! SEE YOU LATER!" And then I was off again.

I was running as fast as my legs would carry me. Nothing would stand between me and finding that letter!

"HEY! YOU! GUY FROM EARLIER!" I tensed at the voice. The angry tone sounded a little familiar. I turned and saw a familiar blonde-haired girl. She seemed pissed about something. "STOP RIGHT THERE, BUDDY!" She was moving like a speeding train: Fast and unstoppable, destroying whatever poor fool may wander right in front of her.

I screamed slightly before running faster. "Whatever I did to piss you off, SORRYYYY!"

"HEY GET BACK HERE!" And so we ended up running through the halls. I don't know how that girl found me or why she was pissed at me, but I'd be damned if I let her catch me! I just got into Moon Cell Academy so I won't give up until I find that acceptance letter!

"NO WAY IN HELL!" I just kept running and running, screaming for my life.

I did my best to dodge any people passing by me, sometimes nudging them as I made my way through. The girl chasing me made no such accommodations. Anybody passing in front of her either got sent flying or knocked to the ground. She seemed to become faster as her rage became stronger.

"GET BACK HERE NOW BEFORE I WRING YOUR NECK LIKE A CHICKEN!"

I just screamed louder and kept running. And then I slammed right into someone else, knocking them forward and myself backwards.

"Watch where you're going!" The other voice, unfortunately familiar, shouted at me. It was once again the blue-haired guy from earlier.

I laughed awkwardly. "Sorry about that. Didn't see ya there."

The teen stood up and brushed himself off, very annoyed. "Someone's rather full of themselves. For someone like me, you should be on your knees begging for mercy." He pointed down at me.

I blinked. "...Who are you exactly?"

I could swear I saw a vein popped up on his forehead. "You claim not to know the newest head of the Matou household?!"

I cocked my head to the side. "...Do you know Sakura-san?"

"DON'T IGNORE ME!" I turned away, ignoring the blue-haired teen.

"I hate to chat and run, but I have to find my acceptance letter. Bye!"

"Hold it!" The Matou boy ran in front of me. "You don't just ignore Shinji Matou and walk away! Why is that acceptance letter so important to you anyway?" He smirked. "Let me guess: You're one of those low-class idiots who barely scraped by? What? Did your mommy and daddy have to scrape together the fee to take the entrance exam? Were they gutter rats?"

I felt a strange feeling in my chest. I couldn't help but recognize it.

Anger.

"Onii-sama." I turned to see a familiar, somewhat nervous girl walk up to Shinji. It was Sakura-san. She then turned to me, eyes widening slightly in surprise. "Oh, Kishinami-senpai."

Shinji laughed. "Good timing, Sakura. You're just in time to see me explain to this low-class mongrel how much of a loser he is." I glared at Shinji. "So how many times exactly did your mother have to sell her body to buy you the chance to take the exam? 50? 60 times? Then again, I doubt I'd expect much from your dad. He's probably as much of a loser as you are."

"SHUT UP!" My shouts gathered the attention of every last person who hadn't already been paying attention to our little 'conversation'. Shinji was surprised by my sudden rage. I bit my lower lip and clenched my fists by my side. "DON'T YOU SAY A GODDAMN THING ABOUT MY DAD! He was a good man! My mother told me so and my mother wouldn't lie!"

"OH, so you're a mommy's boy?" Shinji mocked.

"I said shut up! SHUT UP ABOUT MY PARENTS, YOU BASTARD!"

"Um, Onii-sama." Shinji turned towards Sakura-san. "M-Maybe you should leave Kishinami-senpai alone. H-He's a good person."

"Oh. Feeling pity for the low-class wretch?"

Sakura-san shrank away from her brother's laughter. She shot me an apologetic look and I sighed.

"Forget it. You're just a guy with some superiority complex that I don't want to deal with." I turned to leave.

"Onii-sama, stop!" I heard a boom and pieces of debris from the roof tap my shoulder. Then was the sound of someone being shoved to the ground. I spun around on my heels and was shocked by the sight.

Sakura was on the ground, a small bruise on her face with a fearful expression.

Shinji stood over her, a smoking crater in the ceiling above his head. "Don't get in my way, you worthless girl!"

I quickly realized what happened. Shinji had tried to unleash a magic spell to attack me from behind. Sakura must've knocked his arm away to mess with the aim of the spell. Then after the spell missed, he smacked Sakura.

"But you shouldn't be so cruel to Kishinami-senpai!"

"What did you-" He raised his hand no doubt to strike her again only for me to suddenly appear, grabbing his wrist and glaring into his eyes.

"Don't you dare lay another hand on her!" I shouted in a powerful tone.

I'm a nice guy most of the time. I can take a lot of shit. There aren't too many things that can make me angry, but hitting a woman is definitely one of them.

I'm a gentleman!

"Why you-!" Shinji raised his other hand, prepared to use another spell. "Time to punish this stupid dog!" But before he could perform any kind of incantation, Shinji's words and face were greeted by my left fist. The blue-haired boy was sent sprawling across the ground, landing on his face with his hind sticking up into the air.

There were several laughs and giggles at Shinji's current position, but I continued glaring down at his prone form. But I did find the huge bruise I left on his face to be satisfying.

"RIDER!" Shinji screamed, getting onto all fours and clearly enraged at having been humiliated in such a way. "DAMMIT! I'M NOT PAYING YOU TO DO ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!"

"Yeah yeah! I get it." A voice said as a new figure appeared out of thin air. She was an older girl and had long wavy crimson pink hair, blue eyes, and scar across her face. She wears brown choker collar almost attached to the girl's school uniform she wore which was open enough to show an ample amount of her breasts. She also wore long, dark-brown boots.

I backed away uncertainly from the amount of power this woman radiated. There was no doubt in my mind.

This woman was Shinji's Servant.

She sighed. "You really need to work on your temper, Master." Shinji growled at the Servant.

"Shut up! Just punish this bastard who insulted me!" He pointed at me, snapping me back to my senses and giving me the time to wonder why I hadn't run or hidden while they were talking or standing in awe of the Servant's appearance.

Damn my lack of initiative!

"Kid, why didn't you run when everyone was distracted?" The crimson-haired girl asked me with confusion.

"Because I DID NOT think to do as such." I explained with faux-pride.

The girl whom Shinji called under the class of Rider shrugged. "Well, makes my job easier." She held out her hands and I was surprised as two flintlock pistols suddenly appeared in her hands. She pointed them at me. "Any last words?"

Shit. Why did I not start running!?

_"I HAVE A FEW!"_

I tensed, remembering very clearly the owner of the voice. I quickly turned back to the Rider-class Servant, getting on my knees. "If you're going to kill me, please do it now. Because I feel your 'killing of the Hakuno' would be much more painless than-"

_"THERE YOU_ ARE!"

I started sweating. "Shit." I felt myself being grabbed by the shoulder and turned around to face the familiar angry face of a certain blonde. I smiled nervously. "H-Heeeeeey~! What's up...?"

The blonde girl was glaring daggers at me as she grabbed me by the collar. "I've been trying to catch up to you all day, you A-hole!"

I began sweating even more profusely. "Look, I know you're in the middle of trying to kill me but I kinda have other people waiting in line, soooo-"

"LOOK OUT!" She shoved me forward and leaped backwards as something bright, powerful, and pink shot straight past us. I hit the ground with a thud a second before I heard a loud explosion behind me. I blinked before turning around. There was a humongous crater in the wall, destroyed by some powerful force.

I then heard the click of a pistol's hammer being clicked backwards. I looked back towards the Rider Servant who had a slightly surprised look on her face and one pistol pointed towards me.

"Hm. I'm surprised that girl was fast enough to react." The gun-wielding Servant admitted.

I turned to said girl and stared in surprise as she got back to her feet, brushing herself off. "Geez. You really are a pain in the ass."

"You...saved me?"

"No duh, dumbass!" The girl shouted harshly.

"But...weren't you trying to kill me earlier?" I asked, still shocked by my murderer(?)-turned-savior's actions.

The blonde-haired girl's angry expression turned to angry confusion. "What the Hell are you talking about? You dropped this earlier, dumbass." She pulled out a sheet of paper from her pocket and handed it to me. My eyes widened when I realized that it wasn't a paper, but rather, an envelope. A RED envelope.

I excitedly snatched the envelope from her hand and looked down at it. "My acceptance letter!" Forsaking any pride I ever had, I lunged for the girl and wrapped my arms around her legs. "Oh thank you thank you thank you thank you! THANK YOU!"

The blonde blushed. "G-Get off of me! L-Lemme go, dumbass!"

"HEY!" I was snapped out of my pride-forsaking moment by the sound of Shinji's voice. "We were kind of in the middle of something! So why don't you go home and play with dolls, little girl?"

The girl blinked, confused for a moment. "Little?" Then she realized that Shinji's gaze was directed a few inches below her neck. Her face pinked slightly before her hate-filled gaze turned back to Shinji. "You-!" But Shinji was unable to say anything as my fist was once again planted firmly against his face.

Shinji was sent flying backwards, me glaring at his flailing form. "You never insult a woman's body, bastard!"

Shinji glared at me as he got back to his feet. "SHUT THE HELL UP!" He held out his hand and suddenly a black flurry of energy shot through the air towards me. This sent the crowd of students running, screaming as they tried to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

"LOOK OUT!" The girl called out to me. Then an explosion.

Shinji laughed. "See that?! That's why you don't mess with the High-Class magi, you cretin!"

The Rider-class Servant side, lowering her pistols. "A shame. He probably won't be getting back up from that."

"I'd retract that statement if I were you." I called out. The smoke from the attack cleared to reveal...DUN DUN DUN...Yours truly. My hand was outstretched and my hand was smoking slightly, but other than that, I had no true injuries.

Shinji's eyes widened so much that I would've thought they would pop out of his skull. "How did you-?! What the Hell did you do?!"

I smirked, all of my previous fear vanishing completely. "Why not try again and find out, you spoiled prince?" Those who stuck around laughed at my insult, including the blonde girl who was grinning a little.

Shinji growled again, screaming in absolute rage as he unleashed another barrage of black energy. "DIE!"

I chuckled as static electricity began to crackle in my hand. "Let me show you one of the reasons I was accepted into Moon Cell Academy!" I focused on the arcs of the black energy, my eyes scanning the attacks as time seemed to slow. I blinked once then swatted my hand to the left as the first arc came close. The static on my hand seemed to interact with the energy for a brief moment before the attack completely dissipated. I held out my hand as more attacks came forth. The moment they came into contact with my left arm, they completely faded into nothingness.

A drop of sweat rolled down the side of Shinji's face. "H-How...How did a low-class wretch like you counter my magic!?"

I lowered my still smoking hand to my side. "That's why I passed the entrance exam."

"Holy-!" A voice whispered from the regathering crowds.

"Wait! What was that guy's name again?"

"Hakuno Kishinami, why?"

"Holy shit! I've seen that name! He got a perfect score on the entrance exam because of some power he has!"

Shinji tensed as he heard the chatter. "W-What?"

"You...Just what power is that...?" The blonde girl standing behind me actually looked impressed.

I raised a clenched fist before me, more static crackling in the palm of my hand. "Well, it's really a compilation of all of the knowledge I've studied concerning the arts of magic. Over the course of time, I've studied just about most every known spell known to man and magi. I've noticed with all of the spells there was some form of flaw or weakness. So I came up with the idea of my own spell...or perhaps I should call it '**Anti-Spell**'. It's the one spell that makes up for my overall incompetence as a Magus."

Shinji backed away uncertainly. "**A-Anti-spell**?!"

I nodded. "Yes. **Anti-Spell** was created as a complete magic disruptor. No matter what attack or spell you hit me with, even if it's a physical object, **Anti-Spell** will exploit any weakness in it and destroy it as long as I can find a single crack in the structure or design. **Anti-Spell** is the counter to all creation. My magic is able to target anything's Achilles' Heel."

I found myself totally confused when I felt the completely blank stares of everyone around me.

""What?"" Was the question that everyone asked simultaneously.

Was the explanation too complicated?

"Erm..." I scratched my head. I had to think of a different way to explain it. "OK, has anyone here seen _A Certain Magical Index_?"

Everyone's hands immediately went up. I nodded.

"OK. So picture Touma's Imagine Breaker except it can break apart anything as long as he can see a weak point. That just about sums up **Anti-Spell**."

""OOOOOHHHHH!""

"Yeah..."

Shinji growled after the explanation had finished. "S-So what if you have your damn **Anti-Spell**?! I-I s-still have-Oh right! Rider! Deal with him!"

Shit, I forgot about the Servant.

The Rider Servant found herself laughing. "I'll admit that most of that was entertaining, so I'll tell you the name of the gal who shall be putting you in a coma today. The name's Francesca Drake." She once again pointed both of her flintlock pistols at me.

"Please don't do this, Onii-sama!" Sakura pleaded. Right...Sakura.

I closed my eyes, remember why I was doing this in the first place.

"Hakuno..." I muttered. I raised my hands. There was no way I was going to win against a Servant, but I wouldn't just stand by and let Shinji treat people like he does! Somebody had to show him that he doesn't scare anybody! "MY NAME IS HAKUNO KISHINAMI AND I REFUSE TO RUN AWAY!"

Francesca tightened her fingers around the triggers of her pistols. "Well, g'night then, Kishinami-kun." She fired.

I readied myself to feel the full impact of the attack...

But it never came.

I remembered being shoved backwards to the ground and the sound of air vibrating from an explosion, but I didn't feel any pain. For a brief moment, I entertained the idea I was dead, but then I opened my eyes.

A lone figure was standing in front of me with a sword drawn. Her red jacket had been tossed aside, leaving much more of her back revealed. Her sword was the most noticeable thing. I wasn't quite sure how to describe it other than beautiful. It was more dazzling than any silver. It had an ornate, sparkling white silver sword adorned with splendid decorations. But it gave off a strange demonic radiance.

"...Cool sword." I told my savior. Apparently I said the right thing because the blonde-haired girl in front of me turned her head sideways and shot me a grin.

"Yeah. It was a _steal_." The way she worded it sounded strange. "Glad you like it, cos you're going to see it alot more from now on, partner."

...Wait...

"Partner?!" I asked in disbelief.

The girl nodded. "The name is Mordred. I'm of the Saber-Class." My jaw dropped.

"M-Mordred? L-Like Mordred PENDRAGON!?" Mordred shot me a glare. I winced. Whatever was wrong with her last name, she didn't want to talk about it or the fact she was related to THE SERVANT OF THE NUMBER 1 RANKED MASTER, EMIYA KIRITSUGU!

"Do you wanna be partners or not?!" I nodded quickly, wisely remaining silent. "Good answer."

Shinji broke out into laughter. "Oh how rich!? The worthless brat of the King of Servants and the low-class loser! What a fitting pairing!" He then turned to Francesca beside him. "Rider, why don't you teach BOTH of them a lesson?!"

Francesca shrugged. "Fine. But for two, it's twice the price." She aimed her revolvers as Mordred this time.

I opened and closed my mouth several times, hesitating to speak before I turned to my new Servant. "Before we discuss anything else, shall we form a contract?"

"Yeah yeah yeah! But later! Let's kick these guys' asses first!" I thought about it and nodded.

"Agreed."

"I get the big-busted bimbo and you get the whiny shrimp, agreed?" I nodded. "Good." Mordred then raised her sword, ready to strike.

"On second thought, I'll take down the washboard for free." A faint sense of annoyance was present in Francesca's tone.

"Who are you calling a washboard!?" The Saber-class student charged forward with her sword. Francesca aimed her pistols at Mordred and fired repeated blasts at Mordred. Not wanting to be left out of the fight, I turned towards Shinji and cracked my knuckles, smiling in a deceptively kind way.

"So...where were _we_?" Shinji backed away uncertainly.

"S-Stay awaaaay!" He then began to unleash black energy waves haphazardly, not paying attention to where he was aiming. All of the students ran away yet again as the collateral damage became more extreme. I started running towards Shinji, my fists crackling with the energy of my **Anti-Spell**.

I held out my hands in front of me, making sure not to let the energy touch any other part of my body. I swiped at each strike as Shinji started focusing his attacks on me.

"WHY!? WHY WON'T YOU JUST LAY DOWN AND DIE!?"

"Shove it, you spoiled prince!" Then I was right in front of him, pulling my fist back ready to knock Shinji's lights out.

**"ENOUGH!"**

I blinked, breaking concentration enough that I ended up stopping my punch right before it hit Shinji's face.

Shinji stared at me, eyes wide in fear before he fell back onto the ground.

"Oh what now?!" Mordred complained. I looked back to her and saw her sword locked with Francesca's pistols which were used to defend against a strike. It was an impractical way to use them, but an effective way nonetheless. Mordred was clearly upset with having her fight interrupted.

We all turned towards the interrupter.

It was the girl with the red turtleneck from before.

Shinji scowled, still sweating. "W-what do you want Tohsaka?!"

The girl shook her head. "You really have no care for the rules, do you? Picking a fight right in the middle of the hall?!"

Both Shinji and I instinctively pointed at one another. ""HE STARTED IT!""

The girl...wait...what?

I blinked. "What did you say your name was again?" The girl stared at me and I saw a strange look on her face...Familiarity? Whatever it was, it was gone as fast as it had come.

"Tohsaka. Rin Tohsaka."

Sweat began to roll down the sides of my face. "T-Tohsaka...?" She nodded. "...Like...Three Great Families 'Tohsaka'?" Despite my voice sounding squeakier, the girl in red nodded. "...Like the Tohsaka's who are the most prestigious of the Three Great Families?"

"Yes!" Tohsaka shouted, annoyed. "Anyway. The real reason I wanted to stop you was-"

**"WHAT IN THE LORD'S NAME IS GOING ON HERE!?"**

"Nope. Headmaster's already here." Tohsaka said nonchalantly. "Well, if you are expelled, see you later, Hakuno." She then walked away.

Ye-Wait. How did she know my name? Never mind. I had bigger problems judging by the angry expression on the Headmaster's face.

"Well...We're in deep shit." Mordred summed up our situation eloquently.

**And I am done! After several weeks of working, I finally got this done! I would seriously like some feedback on what you guys think! Like it, hate it, just give me your honest opinion. I want to know whether or not this story is worth continuing cos I put a lot of time and work into this chapter.**

**Thanks for the reads and reviews~!**

**Bye-Bye~!**

**WAIIIIT! PS:**

**Since this is a big story, I would like OC submissions for Masters and Servants. Here are the formats. They will be pasted on my profile page. The Servants do not have to be OC's, but original ideas would be appreciated. Genderbent Servants are allowed and are welcomed. **

**For Masters:**

**Name: **

**Age: **

**Gender: **

**Alignment: **

**Affiliation:**

**Appearance: **

**Personality:**

**Abilities:**

**Bio (Not mandatory):**

**Servants...**

**Class:**

**Master: **

**True Name:**

**Gender: **

**Alignment: **

**Appearance: **

**Personality: **

**Stats: (From E to A, E being the worst, A being the highest)**

**Strength:  
**

**Endurance: **

**Agility:  
**

**Magical Energy:  
**

**Luck:  
**

**Noble Phantasm (Rank):**

**Class Abilities:**

**Personal Skills:**

**Noble Phantasms:**


	2. Chapter 2: First Grail Battle

**And from the amount of reviewers and people who sent in OC's, this story is pretty successful so far.**

**Also, thanks to the people who contributed ideas for this chapter. I hope you'll continue being active of the HSGW forum and further help me with ideas while simultaneously thinking up ideas for love interest/what-may-be-harem-members-later-on.**

**I hope you all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except OC's who may appear at a later point.**

**Chapter 2:**

**First Grail Battle**

"Getting into fights, disturbing the peace, frightening students and faculty, destruction of academy property," Headmaster Risei Kotomine had called me, Shinji, Francesca, and Mordred to the Headmaster's Office which was a rather quaint room all in all. A small desk. Several book shelves filled with books on what was no doubt Headmaster-y stuff. He sat behind his desk, his eyes closed, as he listed all of the offenses we had committed. "I'm not one hundred percent sure how many rules you have all violated...on the first day of school."

Both Francesca and I hung our heads, mostly fearful of the consequences of our actions. Shinji was scowling, looking off to the side. Mordred just seemed to be glaring at the wall, her arms crossed in front of her.

I was sweating bullets. I wasn't a bad guy! I just wanted to clock the guy who was about to beat his sister! God, if you are listening, tell me where you find fault with that!

"Normally, if it was each offense separately, I would simply suspend students for an indefinite amount of time for such actions," Headmaster explained. "but this has only been the first day of school and you two have already reflected you attitude through your actions." The Headmaster drummed his fingers on his desk.

I bowed my head. "I-I'm sorry! I didn't plan on fighting! I-"

"It's all the loser's fault!" Shinji accused, pointing at me. "I was just minding my own business and he slammed right into me! He didn't even apologize!"

I glared at Shinji. "Don't you dare act like you're innocent! You insulted my mom and dad!"

"Did no-"

"_ENOUGH!"_

The force of the Headmaster's voice boomed within the tiny office, silencing both Masters.

"As I was saying, your actions have left me very doubtful of your attitude as students and Masters!" The Headmaster turned towards the two Servants. "And you should be even more ashamed for not stopping them!"

Francesca sighed while Mordred just rolled her eyes, muttering "Whatever..."

"I believe that it would do all of you good to take another year to mature before trying to become Masters," The Headmaster said. My heartbeat began to quicken, my mind vaguely knowing where this was going. "You're all expelled!"

I stared silently for several minutes...

Then everything went dark...

* * *

"...lo..."

A voice.

"...llo?" There it was again...am I dead?

I heard the sound of someone being shoved aside. "Oh let me do it!" I then felt two powerful grips grab my collar. "WAKE UUUUUUUP!" Whoever had grabbed me was rather violent. Luckily it was that very violence that snapped me back into consciousness.

My eyes slowly slid open and I was staring right at the face of Mordred. She was giving me her apparently usual glare.

I rubbed my aching head. "What happened?"

Francesca was smiling, amused. "Oh, you fainted after the Headmaster expelled all of us-"

THUD

I hit the ground again.

"-And there he goes again."

* * *

I rubbed my aching head when I sat up. "Oh...what happened?" Mordred was shaking her head and Francesca was clearly resisting the urge to break out into laughter.

"You fainted after the Headmaster expelled us."

THUD

And I was out like a light.

"QUIT DOING THAT!"

* * *

"OK, I feel like I've gone through this before." I noted as I sat up. I turned to the Headmaster, who was staring at me with a look of concern. "What happened exactly?"

"Well-" Francesca started with a grin on her face, amused about something, until Mordred clamped a hand over her mouth. Mordred seemed angry about something.

"We got expelled because of you, loser!" Shinji growled at me. I quickly leaped to my feet.

"Because of me?!" I then fell to all fours. "Oh what's the point? All meaning in my life is gone..."

"..." Shinji crossed his arms glaring at the ground. Despite seeming like an ass, he also seemed to not want to get expelled.

The Headmaster examined both of us, perhaps seeing my depression. "I'm sorry, but there is no other punishment available for such offenses. I would be remiss in my duties as Headmaster if I allowed this to slide."

"Father, if I could interject." We all turned to look behind us to see the door open again, revealing the fake-looking priest from before. The son of the Headmaster, Kirei Kotomine.

The Headmaster smiled as his son entered the room. "Ah, Kirei, what brings you here?"

Kirei smiled to himself, but I couldn't help but feel a horrible chill go down my spine. A smile looked unnatural or just plain evil on that guy's face.

"I've heard of the incident that had occurred this morning and I also heard your previous statement about an alternate punishment." I was uncertain where this was going.

"Do you have other ideas, my son?"

Kirei nodded, bowing slightly to the Headmaster. "If I may, father. We have yet to decide on a match-up for the opening ceremony's Grail War Battle and these two have indeed made a contract with a Servant...so perhaps a little initiative for these two to take part..."

The Headmaster seemed to understand what Kirei was getting at while both Shinji and I exchanged confused glances.

"I see." The Headmaster then turned to us. "My son has given me quite the interesting proposal. It's not ideal, but it is possible for ONE of you two Masters to avoid expulsion."

My eyes widened and I could feel my hope beginning to rise again. "Really?!"

"You two and your respective Servants will face each other for the commemorative first Grail War Battle of the year." The Headmaster explained. "The one who is proclaimed the winner will be absolved of their crimes and will be allowed to remain at Moon Cell Academy. The one who loses will be immediately expelled. Is this acceptable to the both of you?"

I raised my hand uncertainly. "A-Aren't there any other options, Headmaster? I've studied a lot, but I've never competed in an actual Grail War Battle. I don't even have any training. I-I'm not ready!"

"The only other option is expulsion," Kirei stated.

"I am suddenly ready!" Well...it CERTAINLY wasn't ideal, but at least I had a chance now.

"You're going down, you low-class garbage," Shinji hissed into my ear.

"Very well then." The Headmaster decided. "My judgment will be reserved until a victor is decided. The first Grail War Battle will take place in the school arena this Friday. You both have a day from now to prepare. Until that point, you are forbidden to take part in any curricular activities and are in a state of temporary suspension. You are dismissed."

"Yes, Headmaster!" I said, saluting proudly, glad I was given this chance to fight for my right to be a student.

"So a fight, huh?" Mordred said with a strange grin. "Now you're speaking my language."

"I better be getting paid." Was Francesca's sentiments.

"Pfft. Whatever. Might as well kick the loser out right now..." Shinji muttered. He shot me a smug look before walking out of the room, followed by his Servant partner.

"Come on, kid!" Mordred suddenly grabbed me by my collar and dragged me out of the room. "Let's go start preparing."

I sweatdropped as my new Servant partner dragged me across the floor. "Erm...my name's Hakuno."

"Whatever you say, Zakuro."

I stared at her. That wasn't my name...

I got the feeling we were going to be best friends~!

* * *

"_I am the seeker who wishes for power. I am the key, the one who opens the door and guides our fate. I, Hakuno Kishinami, hereby offer this contract before you, Mordred Pendragon, so we may fight together."_

What was going on right now?

Mordred and I were OFFICIALLY forming our contract. We never got to it before with us being dragged into the Headmaster's Office and everything, so now was a good time.

When I explained the situation to the Headmaster, he allowed us to use one of the academy's magic circles to form the contract between Mordred and I. It was a serious ritual that tied the prana of a Magus' magic circuits to the souls of their contracted Servant partners.

Our hands were locked together and our eyes were closed. We allowed our power to connect with that of the magic circle.

And now it was Mordred's turn to speak her part.

"_I am the sword who responds to your contract. I am the protector of good and vanquisher of evil in this eternal world. I, who is the guardian of the sacred scales, do hereby bind myself to your contract. I, Mordred Pendragon, hereby accept the contract of you, Hakuno Kishinami, and bind myself to your will and fate."_

A powerful light emitted from the magic circle below us. That was either very good or very bad.

You see, this is attempt #9 at performing the contract. It's taken this long for Mordred to fully memorize the words for her part of the contract. I was surprised when I found out this was the first time she'd attempted such a thing. It was shocking because of the power she had displayed against Francesca earlier. She was clearly well-trained in the way of the sword...or I'd assume. I only caught the last part of her battle against Francesca so I would assume from how things seemed to go that Mordred was strong.

Anyway, the light was apparently good because although I went blind for a few minutes, the light cleared up just as quickly without any kind of explosions, lasers, or anything that could be considered painful.

I looked around. "So...did it work...?" Mordred was the only one who could confirm that the ritual was successful since she was the one who was taking my prana.

Mordred opened her eyes and quickly separated her hands from mine, turning away.

"Yeah. The contract is complete." Mordred started to walk away.

I blinked. "Eh?" Then I grabbed her shoulder. "W-Wait a minute! W-What do we do now?"

Mordred shrugged. "Go home, I guess." That was a poorly explained answer answer. "We don't have much to do until tomorrow. Just meet up at the arena and try not to get in my way." That was a much better explanation.

It was fair. There wasn't really anything to do. We couldn't go to school or do anything having to do with the Grail War, so going home and just studying was just about all we could do.

I nodded. "Right. See you tomorrow."

We walked out and went our separate ways once we reached the school's main entrance.

"Mordred, wait!" I turned back to my new Servant partner.

Mordred turned her face slightly so one eye was able to glare at me from the side. "What?"

I then quickly bowed, turning my gaze toward the ground. "Thank you very much for becoming my Servant! I am very grateful!"

I thought I saw Mordred's eyes widen a bit and her face turn a slight pink, but I could have been mistaken because she quickly turned away.

"Whatever." Then she continued walking away.

I continued waving until she was out of side. I was about to head home myself when I heard a familiar voice.

"So, prince of losers, saying goodbye to your girlfriend?" I recognized it because of that mocking tone. I turned to see Shinji and Francesca, Sakura standing somewhat afraid behind them. "I will say it will be fitting to take out the knight reject and the third-rate loser in one fight."

I narrowed my eyes. "You say it like you've already won."

"Haven't I?" Shinji asked rhetorically. "You and Pendragon don't stand a chance against Rider's mighty fleet-!" Shinji froze, as if realizing he made some sort of slip. "-er-I mean MIGHT. You stand no chance against her MIGHT!"

"The fight isn't over until the last punch is thrown, Matou." I glared at Shinji, raising my fist slightly, causing Shinji to flinch. Shinji scowled once he recovered.

"Soon enough, I'll put you in your place, Kishinami." He then stomped away like a spoiled brat who had just gotten done throwing a tantrum.

Francesca followed only to stop right next to me, grinning when she shot me a glance.

"Tell your Servant I'm looking forward to finishing our battle."

I swallowed nervously, but nodded. Francesca followed after her Master.

I sighed, wanting to just head home until I turned only to almost slam right into Sakura. She flinched slightly when I almost bumped into her, but quickly recovered.

"I'm sorry, senpai..."

I blushed a little at the adorable look on Sakura's face. "U-Um...it's fine, Sakura. I was the one who almost-"

Sakura shook her head. "No. It's because of me that senpai was almost expelled. If I had just kept quiet, senpai wouldn't have turned around and gotten into a fight with Onii-sama. It's my fault that senpai is in so much trouble."

My eyes widened in shock. Even though Shinji no doubt abuses this girl and hits her, no matter what misfortune befalls others because of Shinji, she blames only herself. She'd endured more of Shinji's abuse than anybody...That thought made me feel so sad...

Then I did something impulsive.

"Matou!" I ran after Shinji and ran out in front of him, holding my arms out to block his path.

Shinji glared at me, raising his hand no doubt in case a fight should break out. "What do you want, low-class loser?"

"I want to put a little more at stake on the results of our battle tomorrow!" I stated firmly. "I have a proposal I want to make!

The blue-haired jerk raised an eyebrow, but he didn't object. "What kind of proposal?"

I pointed at Sakura several feet away. "I've only seen one example of it, but I'm doubtful that little display earlier was your first instance of abuse towards Sakura. And you make me sick. So the wager is that if I win, you never raise hand nor word against Sakura ever again."

"And in the more likely event that I win?" Shinji asked.

I considered what I could possibly give the new head of one of the Three Great Families.

Then an idea came to me. "If YOU win, then I'll become your household's servant, catering to every whim and me never speaking ever again."

I could tell by the smirk on Shinji's face that he was already sold.

I reached out my hand to the head of the Matou. "Do we have a deal?"

Shinji immediately grabbed my hand and shook up and down. "Deal. I hope you've kissed your voice goodbye, loser." I stepped out of the way as Shinji and his Servant once again walked by me.

I sighed. "...Well...that happened."

"You shouldn't have done that, senpai..." I jumped when Sakura somehow suddenly appeared right behind me. I turned to face the violet-haired girl. "...You'll just get in more trouble because of me..." She had the worst expression of guilt on her face that made me only angrier at Shinji.

Whatever he did, he was the one who gave Sakura such a sense of responsibility for everyone else's problems. That's why there was no way I was going to lose to him tomorrow. I was going to mop the floor with that blue-haired jerk!

I gave Sakura a small smile. "Don't worry. I'm definitely going to win. I'll definitely protect you by defeating Shinji." Sakura's eyes seemed to widen slightly and I saw a strange bit of color appear on her face before she ran right past me, following after her brother.

Well that was...confusing.

I sighed, wanting to take a route off of school grounds different from the stairs Shinji just walked down. And so I turned around and made my way back. The other path would take me longer to get home, but I didn't want to catch even a glimpse of Shinji on my way back.

I was walking when-

"That was a pretty stupid thing of you to do."

I immediately turned to retort, expecting Shinji to have spoken, but then I realized it was a girl's voice who spoke. I turned around to see a familiar girl with black hair dressed in red.

My eyes widened and I tensed quite a bit before bowing my head up and down several times.

"A-Ah! T-Tohsaka-sama, forgive me for not noticing your presence!" If I wasn't so terrified of her using her family influence to have my head torn off, I would've questioned why she was there rather than in classes like the rest of the students.

"Relax." Tohsaka-sama commanded in a calm tone. "It's not like I'm gonna tear your head off."

OH MY GOD! SHE READS MINDS!

I did my best to remain calm. Unlike the Matou, the Tohsaka line was still treated like royalty. If the Matous were powerful, the Tohsakas were ten times as powerful. Both in magical ability and influence. I had no doubt that Rin Tohsaka, even against my Anti-Spell abilities, would find a way to obliterate me with her gem-related magic.

"W-What are you doing here, T-Tohsaka-san?" I couldn't stop from feeling nervous. Unlike Shinji, she had a strong presence and a proud aura.

She was my idol!

Strong, smart, and admittedly beautiful. The name Rin Tohsaka was well-known to all magic students. She was one of the best! I aspired to become as great as her someday! She was one of my favorite rookie Masters, being in the top ten of the Academy Holy Grail War Rankings at Rank 4. The Academy Holy Grail War Rankings are something of a junior league for Master and Servants. It ranks the students of ALL EIGHT academies. Out of hundreds of rookie Masters and Servants, Rin Tohsaka and her Servant partner were ranked 4! That spoke well of her chances once she joined the pro circuit.

Tohsaka-san sighed, placing her hands on her hips. "You know that even if you win, you've made an enemy of a fair majority of the Matou family. You DO know that, right?"

"Yep and I could care less." I stated bluntly.

Tohsaka-san blinked in surprise at my response. She once again wore an annoyed look.

"And you still went through with it." She took a deep breath before exhaling. "Why?"

I stared. "Why what?"

"It's the one thing that confuses me." Tohsaka-san explained. "Why did you risk so much to protect that Matou girl? You're risking your entire future for a girl you just met. If you lose, you may not be accepted next year even if you apply. Shinji Matou would be able to get a pass to come back next year because his family still retains a fair amount of influence, but you're, for lack of a better word, low-class. Your family doesn't have as much history or influence as others. So why?"

I had to appreciate the way Tohsaka-san spoke. While SHE called me 'low-class', unlike Shinji, she meant it matter-of-factly rather than as an insult. She wasn't insulting me, just stating the truth.

I shoved my hands into my pockets, closing my eyes. "She was in trouble."

"That's it?" Tohsaka-san face-palmed a little, shaking her head. "Please tell me you aren't one of those bleeding heart hero-types."

"No. It's not like that." I denied. "It's just something my mother told me before she..." I trailed off, giving Tohsaka-san a fair idea on where that thought was going.

A quick expression of guilt appeared on her face. "Oh. Sorry. I didn't-"

"It's fine." I quickly replied, ignoring the pain in my heart at the thought that my mother was dead. "Anyway. She always told me that when I grew up, she wanted me to be a gentleman. A man who would always defend the damsel in distress and never raise a hand against a woman. She never gave me a reason why and up to this day I wonder why I never questioned it...And so I ended up becoming a man of principle. I've never hit a girl in my entire life and I never will."

"You do realize that that is somewhat chauvinistic, right?" Tohsaka-san asked with a strange expression on her face. "SOME PEOPLE might feel offended by how you look down on women like that." Then I realized that the expression on her face was pent-up annoyance slowly turning into anger.

"No no." I replied. "I don't look down on women. In fact, I'm pretty sure almost every girl in this school could kick my ass in a test of magical ability. I train hard physically, but it's still not out of the question for me to lose in a physical confrontation." I felt the killing intent in the air fade somewhat. "Even if I'm beaten to a pulp, I'll never give up my principles. I will defend and never harm a woman." The killing intent from Tohsaka-san faded entirely. "So yeah. Hitting girls is a no-no for me."

"I see..." Tohsaka-san said almost to herself.

"Besides," I continued. "Sakura seemed like a nice person. Nice enough to deserve protection from the likes of Shinji at any rate." I then looked at my watch and clicked my tongue. I had wasted quite a bit of time talking to Tohsaka-san. I could've started coming up with strategies against Shinji and Francesca (not that I knew enough about Francesca's fighting style to do anything). "Sorry, Tohsaka-san, but I gotta go!" I then ran past Tohsaka-san, determined to get home quickly.

"...still the same idiot you were back then..."

I paused at the strange words, turning to face Tohsaka-san. "Um, To-"

"Here!" I reacted quickly, catching something that had been thrown into the air towards me.

I looked down and realized I was looking at a vanilla-colored file. I looked at it confusedly before looking up at Tohsaka-san who had turned and prepared to walk away.

"Everything you need to know about Shinji and his Servant are in that file." My eyes widened in shock at Tohsaka's statement. "Don't waste this gift."

I opened the file and froze when I realized every last bit of information in it was on Shinji and Francesca's combat abilities. Every last one of their abilities, even Francesca's Noble Phantasm were in there. I looked back up at the black-haired girl, staring at her in shock.

"Tohsaka...why-?"

"Cos I felt like it." With that vague answer, Tohsaka-san started walking away. But she stopped for a second. Whatever she was thinking about, she got over it quickly because she continued walking away from me, leaving me alone once again.

I looked down at the file in my hand. It was quite possibly the key the mine and Mordred's victory against Shinji. I was quite certain I could hold my own against Shinji, but I hadn't actually seen Mordred's own fighting ability despite the fact I KNEW they were top-notch. I felt somewhat ashamed for not knowing how exactly Tohsaka-san got her hands on this, but I only had one shot at victory tomorrow. Besides, it's not like I personally took it. Tohsaka-san could just have files on people created from surveillance or observation of previous battles.

I would have to go home and try to contact Mordred...

Shit!

I just realized I had no idea how to get into contact with my partner! How the Hell are we supposed to create a strategy if I had no idea where to find her!?

I sighed. "Damn. I just have no luck whatsoever."

….So much for strategy. At best, I would just have to formulate a strategy on my own and just explain it tomorrow to Mordred when she arrives to the match.

Finally, having no other ideas in mind, I tucked the file under my arm and prepared to walk home.

* * *

I pushed the front door of my house open after I unlocked it and walked inside.

Today was generally an exhausting day and possibly the most complicated day in my entire life...

So other than that it was good.

"Yuki! I'm back!" I then made a few cat sounds to call my pet cat to me so I could give it a friendly pet. Yuki had loyalty that far surpassed that of a dog, thus proving cats were the superior animals. I was surprised when Yuki didn't come running. She usually came because she expected some sort of treat. "Yuki? Here kitty kitty!"

I frowned. My pet still refused to come to my side.

Maybe she's on the litter box...

I made my way into the house locking the door behind me. I walked around calling for my beloved pet again and again but receiving no response. I eventually decided to check the living room to see if she was sleeping on the couch and was shocked to see a very surprising sight.

"Who's a cute kitty witty~?! Who's a cute wittle kitty~?!" A familiar voice sang cheerfully. "You're the cute kitty~! You are~! Meow meow meow~!"

I saw a red jacket on the ground and a familiar blonde on the couch. Her hair was no longer tied back and she was playing with a brown-furred cat, giggling to herself.

"Awwww~! Look at your cute little paws and your soft-" It was at that point that Mordred (it was shocking that it was her of all people) noticed my presence, both of us just staring at one another for several minutes. A touch of pink appeared on her cheeks. Her eyes narrowed and she glared at me.

"...Er...um...I-"

"You. Saw. **NOTHING**." Mordred stated in a "convincing" tone.

"OK then..." I raised my hands in surrender. Then I paused realizing something. "Wait. Why are you here?"

Mordred sat up on the couch, setting Yuki down on the ground, grinning. "Well, shouldn't new partners visit one another to learn to trust and know more about each other."

I closed my eyes, considering her argument. It was probably a lie for the most part, but it was still a good argument. "OK, fair enough. Another question: HOW did you get in here exactly?"

Mordred's grin became more suspicious-looking. I felt my spirit drop.

I knew that somewhere, somehow, there was a window or door in my house that had been smashed or broken beyond repair. I would have to replace that later.

I scratched my head, shoving my hands into my pockets. "I see. So, you want something to eat?"

Mordred raised an eyebrow. "That's it? No big freak out or anything? No 'AIEEEE!' or whatever pansies do in this type of situation?"

I shrugged. "Nope. You're not a robber (I assume) and you're not some street thug (I assume) and I even if you were, I couldn't hit you because you're a woman (I assume)."

"WHAT WAS WITH THAT LAST 'I assume'?!" Mordred screamed at me.

"So would you like a snack?" I asked as if she hadn't screamed.

Mordred pouted, puffing up her cheeks. "You got cheese puffs?"

I nodded, smiling slightly, ignoring the strange choice. "Of course."

"Then get me some cheese puffs."

"Of course."

* * *

After I had gotten Mordred some cheese puffs, we sat in the living room, the file Tohsaka-san had given me sitting on the table in front of me. Papers were spread all across it.

Mordred slouched in her seat, her fingers covered in cheese. From what I gathered, Mordred has a very great love for food since she asked for dinner the moment she finished devouring every last chip-type snack I possessed. "So that Tohsaka chick just GAVE YOU this file?"

I nodded. "Pretty much." It did sound suspicious, but Tohsaka-san had no reason to deceive us...right?

Mordred picked up one of the papers and examined it. "This sounds too good to be true, Kiero."

I sweatdropped at that. "It's Hakuno."

"Yeah yeah, whatever you say, Kokoro." Why is it she only gets the "o" at the end, right? And isn't Kokoro a girl's name?

In the end, I decided to let it go. "So we should probably get to studying. We HAVE TO win tomorrow."

Mordred waved it off. "Please. You got me on your team. Just leave the work to me and stay out of my way and we'll be just fine."

I stared, sweating slightly. "While your level of confidence is assuring, even if you're in one of the strongest Servant Classes, you still might lo-GRMF!" I was silenced when Mordred suddenly lashed out and gripped my neck, squeezing it tightly.

Mordred smiling, but I detected only DEATH within her smile. "Finish that sentence. Go ahead. I **DARE** you."

I couldn't answer because I was coughing, attempting to breathe. "I'm...just...worried..." Mordred relieved her hands from around my throat. I coughed again, taking in some sweet fresh air. "I don't want you to get hurt unnecessarily."

I was surprised when Mordred narrowed her eyes at me. "I don't need your stinking worry so just leave me alone. I wanna get some sleep before the match tomorrow." After that unnecessarily hostile remark, Mordred rolled over on my couch and seemed to slip off into dreamland. So much for dinner then.

I wasn't sure which I wanted to bring up first: The fact that it was only two in the afternoon of the fact that she never asked if she could stay over...

Remembering the feeling of her hand around my throat, I knew better than to say anything on the topic.

Sighing, I turned back to the file. I would still have to read this.

I was determined to win tomorrow, so I needed every bit of info I could get. I would not lose.

Someday, I WILL become a great Master and this will be the first step on that long journey!

* * *

**The Next Day...**

When I woke up the next day, I was surprised to see that Mordred had left ahead of me, leaving a note telling me she just wanted to warm up before heading to school for the Grail War Battle today.

I made sure specifically to look over the file on Shinji and Francesca one last time before I headed off to the battle that will decide my fate.

As I made my way to the academy, I couldn't help but notice all of the gazes directed towards me, pitying me. Someone (most likely Shinji) let it slip that a little more had been wagered on the outcome of our match. Everyone assumed I would immediately lose.

But I couldn't. I had too much riding on this.

After all, I did have info on my enemy...

So I would have to fight with everything I got. I ended up seeing that fake-looking priest, Kirei Kotomine, by the front entrance.

I couldn't help but feel that the smile was meant to be more mocking than anything.

"Welcome, Kishinami Hakuno. Your Servant had arrived ten minutes earlier and is currently waiting for you by the arena's elevator." Kirei turned and started to walk away. "Follow me."

I was admittedly surprised. From what I'd gathered about Mordred, I didn't think she'd be the type to arrive early.

I followed Kotomine and we met up with my Saber-Class Servant further along a long hallway.

Mordred was tapping her foot impatiently. She glared at me when I walked up to her.

"About damn time. Our opponents have already gotten here, lazy-ass."

I blinked. "Huh. Didn't think you were this worried."

"I'm not worried about anything." Mordred declared. "L-Like I said. This is in the bag. There's no chance of us losing." But I noticed something in her tone. Something that hadn't been as obvious before, but that I now realized had always been present.

It was uncertainty.

The words she spoke. The reason she was trying to sound so confident of our victory:

Mordred was scared.

She was scared of losing.

She would never admit it, but it was the truth.

It was because, like me, Mordred had her own dream to achieve with her own two hands. Getting expelled from the academy would put a bitter end to that dream. And so she had no choice but to keep her spirits up. If Mordred read Francesca's file and found something the Rider-Class Servant surpassed her in, then her confidence would begin to fail.

"Oi! Why are you staring at me?!" Mordred asked, a clear look of annoyance on her face.

I realized I had been staring at Mordred the entire time I had been thinking and quickly turned away.

"So, young Master and Servant, are you prepared for your first, and hopefully not last, Grail War Battle?"

Both Mordred and I turned to one another and nodded before turning back to Kirei Kotomine.

Mordred summoned out her sword. "Bring'em on!"

I clenched one fist in front of me. "We WILL win this fight! Our hopes and dreams rest on this fight!"

Kotomine nodded before stepping to the side, gesturing us to the elevator.

"Now step into the elevator. Your opponent awaits."

The double doors of the elevator slid open in opposite directions, allowing both Mordred and I to enter it. The door automatically closed shut the moment we stepped foot inside. It was pitch-black inside. The darkness only added more suspense to the coming battle.

*****Flash*****

The ground beneath us shook slightly before the lights finally turned on.

"Heh! Look who decided not to turn tail and run! Then again, you are a stupid mutt. You can only follow orders without realizing you are hopelessly outclassed!" There was another round of laughter as I glared at the person in front of me, both of us separated by a sheet of no-doubt impenetrable glass.

Shinji Matou and Francesca Drake.

Our opponents.

"Can your ego get ANY bigger, you pompous dumbass?" Mordred asked, yawning a little.

Shinji glared, but it was Francesca who spoke.

"I'm looking forward to finishing our fight, Saber." Francesca's tone was level, but I noticed a certain hostility towards Mordred.

Mordred grinned. "What? You up for more punishment? Didn't know you were a masochist."

"I'm going to enjoy filling you with holes."

"Bring it on, bitch."

Both Shinji and I took an instinctive step away from our respective Servants, somewhat unnerved how the Servants' desire to kill each other outmatched that of the Masters' desire to kill each other.

Subconsciously, I wondered what exactly happened during their first fight to inspire such hatred.

"You really should have run away or begged for forgiveness while you had the chance, Kishinami." Shinji taunted, getting back into his previous cocky mood. "Hell, even now I might allow you to speak after I win if you apologize right now."

"I won't lose to the likes of you, Shinji." I declared.

Shinji once again laughed. "'I won't lose to the likes of you.' That's adorable really. You lost the moment you tried to go up against me and **El Draque**."

"Don't go deciding my fate before the fight's even started, Matou!" I held a hand to my chest. "My dream is something too large for any foe to crush. THAT is why I won't lose!"

Shinji shook his head, mocking me further. "Well, since you're a man who's clearly reaching for the stars, I'll just have to try not to have EXTRA fun smacking you back down into the dirt."

I gave him a deadpan look.

Shinji stared at me. "Well...?"

I kept staring. Mordred gave me a curious stare, but said nothing. Nothing but silence passed between us.

"ANSWER ME, YOU BASTARD!" Shinji screeched. "HOW DARE YOU IGNORE YOUR BETTER!? Answer me now or I'll have Rider fill you with so many bullet holes that you'll want to beg for my forgiveness over and over! Then-"

"Calm your reins, partner." Francesca said coolly. She gave me a calm look. "He's spoken enough. It appears he's preferring to leave the final say on the matter for the results of our battle."

As if by some unspoken signal-

BING!

The elevator came to a stop and the doors slid open.

The moment we stepped out those doors, the real battle would begin.

* * *

**Mordred's POV...**

Blocko (or whatever his name was) and I stepped out of the elevator.

The roaring sound of cheers filled the arena as we stepped out into a large circular dome made of a supposedly indestructible material.

"Yeah! Kick their ass, Shinji!"

"Send those rejects to the crap pile!"

"Show those losers while they don't belong here!"

I sighed. I expected it. I didn't give a damn either way really. I only had to last here long enough to get stronger and beat the shit out of _that person_. I didn't give a damn if everyone hated me, I would just-

I jumped at the feeling of a hand on my shoulder. I almost instinctively flipped the bastard over until I realized it was just that guy I made a pact with...whatever his name was. At first I thought he was a pervert who was making a move, but then I saw a strangely calm smile on his face.

"Sorry. I probably should've warned you, but I'm not well-liked apparently." He said it in such a calm tone, as if used to such words. "People don't like me because I'm of low class even if I did get some of the top entrance exam scores. But don't let it get to you. In the end, it doesn't matter cos someday I plan on surpassing all of them. Then they'll definitely respect both us, you more-so because you're going to be one of the most powerful Servants."

Apparently the dumbass thought it was him they were booing...well they WERE booing him, but more-so because I was his partner. They've heard my reputation as "the Tyrant Knight" or "the Knight of Treachery", so yeah...

You know, it was a little strange though. I oddly didn't feel as angry as I was before after...Hakuro? After Hakuro said those words, I just didn't feel as angry. I also sensed a strangely familiar look in his eye. The EXPECTANCE of mocking or booing. He was clearly used to being the underdog.

Huh. I guess we're alike in a way. I SUPPOSE making him my Master wasn't the WORST decision I've ever made...

"_**Activating Barrier Field."**_

There was a high-pitched squeal as I could literally FEEL the bounded field created for Grail War Battles went up.

There was an announcement from the Headmaster as the two Masters took a position far behind their respective Servants.

"_In order to commemorate the first active week of the semester, let us applaud the two challengers! Both are newly planted seedlings, but perhaps, with time, they will both grow into powerful beings to surpass all expectations! First, we have the well-known Hakuno Kishinami. Serving by his side is Mordred Pendragon of the Saber-Class!"_ There was another round of boos for the two of us. _"And of course we have the famed Shinji Matou of the Matou family, being the Master of Francesca Drake of the Rider-Class!"_

And of course cheers for that douchebag. I really couldn't wait to win and send his ass packing.

"_Then, by my own authority, let the first Grail War Battle of the semester BEGIN!"_

Me and the bitchy Rider didn't need any more encouragement. Whatever Hakuro was doing, I didn't care.

Me and this bitch were gonna settle things.

Francesca pointed her revolvers at me and opened fire.

I focused and used my sword to block each and every shot fired.

I lunged forward and swung my sword at the pink-haired woman's side, but she leaped over my head. I heard the click of her guns and immediately used a small **Prana Burst** to leap to the side to avoid a new onslaught of bullets. The Rider-Class Servant continued firing at me. I focused on dodging much to my irritation.

"Get over here and fight me like a man!" I barked at her.

Francesca laughed. "You DO realize we're both women, right?"

I growled. "Shut up!" I moved side to side, blocking any of the bullets that were fired my way. We continued on like this for what seemed like hours. I silently ordered my "partner" to stay out of this. I didn't want him knocking out the enemy Master too early.

I swung downward on the pink-haired bitch, but she blocked with her surprisingly durable pistols. Francesca smirked.

"You know. I'm honestly surprised."

I glared. "About the fact that I'm SOOO going to kick your ass?"

"No. About how little you seem to keep an eye on your Master." I frowned, uncertain what she meant.

"Huh?"

Francesca refused to elaborate. "Now that I know that, I can really go all-out."

Then suddenly we weren't there anymore.

The sky turned dark and the ground beneath us changed. I couldn't help but notice that the Rider-Class Servant seemed to be glowing with power.

"Let me show you the power of my Noble Phantasm: **Golden Wild Hunt**."

And apparently I was in a reality marble.

"A reality marble?" My Master wondered aloud.

We were standing on the deck of a ship. "Well...that happened awfully fast."

The Matou Master laughed. "Now feel the wrath of the Spanish Armada, Kishinami!"

Then a powerful explosion and the sound of a loud scream.

My eyes widened in realization. "Hakuro!"

* * *

**Elsewhere (3rd Person POV)...**

A tall, muscular teen with purple-tipped spiky, black hair stared down at the fight below him with his light purple orbs. He watched from a higher view point as his two fellow students duked it out among each other. He had his legs hanging off the railing he sat on, swinging them with a bored expression on his face.

He was certain the fight was over when the Rider-Class Servant materialized powerful cannons to seemingly blow the brown-haired Master halfway to Hell.

"Huh." He said with a bored tone. "I really thought that that Kishinami guy would've lasted longer. I mean, sure he seemed like a small-fry if you looked at social class alone, but it takes helluva lot of brains to get the top score. He had lots of potential." He sighed. "Man, I actually hoped that Shinji finally got what was coming to him."

"You're awfully quick to rule him out, Shuren." The young teen, now known as Shuren, turned with an amused smile to see a familiar tsundere (although he would never dare to say it out loud) walk up to him, her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"Well, if it isn't the lovely Rin-sama~" Shuren teased.

Rin glared at Shuren before walking to the railing and continuing to stare at the fight below.

"If I know _that person_ like I think I do, he won't fall so easily." Rin sounded so confident that Shuren felt compelled to look down back at the match they were observing.

He was pleasantly surprised when the smoke cleared to reveal Hakuno Kishinami actually in one piece and that he wasn't eliminated from the match.

The brown-haired Master was relatively unscathed. He had his arm held out before him. His sleeve was burned off and his arm was somewhat injured, but other than panting a little as if having been under an immense stress, Hakuno Kishinami appeared to be alright.

Shuren smiled. "Looks like that's the power of the famous **Anti-Spell** I've been hearing about."

"_Is that the best you got, Matou!?"_ Shuren was impressed by how determined and confident Kishinami sounded despite having been hit and almost done in by a Noble Phantasm-level attack. Not just Shuren, but Shinji, Francesca, and Mordred all shared a similar sense of surprise.

Kishinami fell to one knee. It appeared managing to stop that attack left him severely drained.

Apparently, the amount of mana used on the spell depended on the magnitude of the attack or object being targeted. Either way, such a feat wasn't common. Even the top ten Academy Holy Grail War students would have been impressed. Sure it was only a small attack compared to the full power of the Noble Phantasm, but still impressive nonetheless.

"_Like I said before. I won't lose to the likes of a pompous ass like you, Shinji!"_ Shuren found himself chuckling when he saw Shinji's face turn red with rage. "_Me and Mordred...we WILL win this fight! We can't lose! To lose would mean we lose our best chance, perhaps our only chance...Our dreams rest on this battle! It is because of those dreams that we will not lose! My dream is one that surpasses all others. My goal: To become the Rank 1 Master in the Professional Holy Grail War Rankings!"_

There was a long silence as even Shuren was shocked by the announcement. To his right, Rin merely smirked, as if expecting such words from the teen.

[EEEEEEHHHHHHH!?]

Was the collective response. Even Hakuno's own Servant appeared shocked.

"_I don't care who looks down on me! I'll keep moving forward, no matter what! My goal isn't some noble gesture, but it's the wish that resides within my very soul!"_ Shuren's shock faded as he found himself smiling as well. Even though he got hit by such a powerful attack, Kishinami still had the will to continue. _"I am the partner of Mordred Pendragon, the supposed "Tyrant Knight"! You look down on both of us because we do not live up to the reputations of others, but we both have spirit and courage that will surpass all of you! With the power of both of our dreams combined, we will never lose to someone pathetic and selfish like you, Shinji!"_

A noticeable look of surprise on Mordred's face, but the faintest smile could be seen on her face.

Shuren placed a hand on the side of his face, smiling at the sight of Shinji trembling with rage.

"Oho! I can see why this guy interests you, Rin-chan. You'd better hurry and snatch him up...Ah, if only he were a girl~"

Even though Shuren was clearly joking, Rin turned a slight shade of pink.

"W-What are you talking about?! I-I never said I was interested in him or anything!"

"Goshujin-samaaaa!" A voice whined. Suddenly, a certain fox-eared girl appeared out of nowhere, comical tears falling from her eyes as she grabbed Shuren by the collar and began shaking him violently. "NO! You must not fall down _that path_! Man or woman-" She was silenced when Shuren leaned forward and gently touched his lips against hers. The fur on the fox-girl's tail stood on end as she melted into her destined-lover's arms, embracing him and his lips.

After several seconds, Shuren pulled away, smiling as he pet his Caster-class Servant on the head. She let out satisfied noises at being spoiled by her Master.

Shuren smiled softly. "Relax. Even if he was a girl, Tamamo's the only one for me. To me, you're the greatest girl in the world because you're the one I love."

"Eeeeyaaaaah!" Tamamo shrieked with joy. "When Shuren-sama says such romantic things, my heart feels like it's going to melt~!" She then pulled out her cellphone and began to excitedly tap the keys. "Ah! I think I have my new ring tone~!" She pressed a key on her phone.

"_Tamamo's the only one for me."_

Tamamo continued squealing to herself, hugging Shuren again. "I'll listen to it every morning and night!"

"Get a room, you two!" A second Servant materialized out of thin air, grinning as he observed the fight between the underdog and the High-class Magus with his blood-red eyes. He wore the male student uniform and had his blue-hair tied back in a pony tail.

Tamamo's ear twitched in annoyance as she glared at the Lancer-class Servant. "Go out to your dog house, you mutt!"

"Oi! Who are you calling a mutt, you bitch!?"

"Eh!? Just because foxes are more related to dogs doesn't make me a bitch, mutt!"

"Bitch!"

"Mutt!"

Both Masters sighed tiredly at their respective Servants' words.

They would've LOVED to hear ANOTHER fight between them (hehe...Sarcasm...), but instead they pinched the ears of their respective Servants until they were silent, unwilling to put up with the pain of having their ears pulled any longer.

They didn't even know WHY the two hated each other. With any other girl, Cu Chulainn was fairly pleasant, but with Tamamo, they snapped at each other like...well, DOGS. It was a huge mystery.

Shuren once joked that it was like two dogs fighting for dominance, but he learned his lesson for telling such jokes when Tamamo tried to pinch his cheek off.

Having silenced the two Servants, Shuren letting Tamamo sit in his lap as he pet her, gently rubbing her ears every now and then. A little hazardous since he was sitting on a railing, but neither members of the couple cared if they fell apparently. "Their love gave them wings" as they put it.

They continued observing the match below.

Hakuno continued fighting regardless of the injuries he sustained. Mordred, for some reason, seemed absolutely revitalized. They began their counterattack regardless of Francesca's Noble Phantasm which consisted of an entire armada. Mordred began trading more close-range blows with the Rider-Class Servant who began to flee, leaping to one of the other ships of the armada, Mordred following after her.

Shinji apparently thought he could take on Hakuno now that he was weakened...but he was wrong.

Shuren found himself more and more interested as the fight continued. With Mordred's vicious assault, Francesca had no chance at trying another sneak attack on Hakuno under Shinji's orders (cos Francesca herself seemed honorable enough. Shinji was the only person Shuren knew who would do something so dirty.).

The battle continued regardless of Shuren's thoughts.

_So, will you sink or swim in this situation? You are an interesting guy, Kishinami Hakuno..._

"_HAKURO! KICK THAT BLUE-HAIRED BASTARD'S ASS!"_

Yep. They were definitely an interesting pair.

* * *

**Elsewhere...**

Another girl with blonde-hair tied in coils watched the match with no interest whatsoever.

It was just boring.

"What do you think, milady?" Her Servant asked.

The girl sighed. "Well..." She then observed the brown-haired Master with a bit more interest as he used his spells to defend against the Matou Master, saying some rather awe-inspiring words filled with a strange charisma. "I will admit that Kishinami is "unique"."

"You ARE referring to his ability rather than his appearance, correct?" The Lancer Servant asked.

"Mm, I suppose a little of both."

She continued watching as the brown-haired Master, Kishinami Hakuno, quickly began turning the tables. It was rather amazing how more in-sync his attacks were with his Servant's.

Despite being heavily injured, despite possessing less magical power and no true experience, Hakuno Kishinami persevered and his counterattack was flawless. The way he beat all of the odds so far despite being a simple man was remarkable, it was astounding, it was...

Admittedly attractive.

It helped that her rival also had interest in this boy for some reason. Perhaps taking him as her own interesting servant would be fun in more ways than one.

Hakuno continued fighting against the Matou Master with his fists, the blue-haired teen running away like a coward.

* * *

**Mordred's POV...**

I had to admit, it's impressive that the kid managed to get back up after getting hit by that cannon.

Now it was just me and that bitch while Hakuro took out the blue-haired Master.

It was strange...even though he spoke the cursed title I bore...He seemed PROUD to be my partner.

I felt strangely happy.

I felt stronger and more powerful than I did before.

I continued exchanging blows with Francesca who occasionally used the cannons from her armada to fire at me. She fired, I blocked and then swung at her, then she blocked and fired back. I was starting to get fed up with this bullshit.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw my partner going after that blue-haired pansy who was screaming like a little girl as he ran away from Hakuro.

That was hilarious. I took joy in watching that.

"Screw this!" I locked my blade against Rider's pistols. "I'm finishing this now!"

Francesca raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And how are you gonna do that?"

I grinned. "Easy. I never unveiled my SECRET weapon."

"'Secret weapon'?"

I separated from the pink-haired woman and lunged with my sword. I swung over her head. She ducked and tried to kick me in the stomach, but I lowered my sword to block the attack. I pushed forward, knocking her off-balance for just a few seconds. That gave me the time to get up close. Francesca tried firing several shots at me to slow me down, but I bobbed and weaved in-between each shot.

I swung my sword down on her with only one arm. "DIE!" The Rider-Class Servant raised her pistols over her head to block my strike. I smirked. "Take THIS!" I slammed my one free fist into her gut, knocking all of the wind out of her as an expression on shock appeared on her face. Then I delivered a straight uppercut to her lower jaw sending her flying into the air.

Francesca growled, backflipping mid-air to rain down another barrage of prana bullets at me which I either evaded or blocked.

"**Prana BURST!**" I focused my prana on my feet as I leaped into the air, jumping much further than I initially could have. The Rider stared up at me in shock as I ended up in the air over her head. I grinned as I swung my sword downward. Blood spewed everywhere as I cut a large gash in her shoulder. Before the enemy could even think about recovering, I kicked her right in the face with all of my might, sending her crashing to the ground.

* * *

**Hakuno's POV...**

Shinji continued running away as I chased after him, determined to end the fight before Mordred could be seriously injured.

She was my partner. I'd like to think that we'd become friends within the past day, but I could be mistaken. I did mean the words I said before.

Yes I knew of her reputation as a traitor to _that person_. But Mordred seemed like a good person, and I would stand by her side while I proved that to everyone else.

"S-Stay away!" Shinji screamed as he flung attack spells over his shoulder, running away. I used my **Anti-Spell** repeatedly, negating each and every attack. I started panting after negating the tenth or eleventh spell. It took a lot of my power to negate that cannon attack earlier. Even THEN, I still ended up getting injured. That just proved that the strength of a human Master was far inferior to that of a Servant with Heroic blood.

Shinji tripped and fell face-forward. He rolled over so he was sitting upright, staring at me in terror as I approached him with a raised fist.

He raised his hands. "W-Wait! C-Can't we talk this out?!" He crawled backwards like the insect he was. "I-I mean w-we're both men of good reason, right?"

I felt myself getting pissed at what Shinji was getting at. "If being a man of reason means I'm going to be an arrogant prick like you, then I'd rather be an unreasonable beast."

Shinji chuckled nervously, crawling backwards. "Ah-hehe-I-I see...W-Well, I s-suppose that makes sense, but...I...I think you forgot about-hold on a sec-THIS!" He held out both of his hands, unleashing an even more powerful blast of black energy. I raised one hand and "caught it" with my hand enhanced with **Anti-Spell**, causing it to dissipate.

I stared at him, almost bored. "Is that all?"

Shinji's eyes widened. "H-How can you be this strong?! You're just some low-class wretch!"

I narrowed my eyes. "That's you're true weakness, Shinji. You think yourself to be unbeatable solely because of your family's status. You pick on those weaker than you just to boost your own ego, but you're nothing. Absolutely nothing. You may have your own dream, but you don't draw power from it. The driving force behind my fist is the power of all of mine and Mordred's hopes and dreams. With our desire to attain them, we will never fall to people like you!"

"N-No! H-Hold on!"

I pulled my fist back before slamming it into the side of Shinji's face, sending him flying.

Shinji grunted and wheezed as he tumbled across the ground before grinding against the ground to a slow stop.

He opened his eyes wide, standing up and staring at his open hands. "Whoa! I'm okay!" He pointed at me and laughed. "HA! I guess you're not strong as you thought you were, Kishinami! HAHAHAHA-"

I counted down with my fingers.

Three...two...one...and-

"-AHAHAHA-Wait what's that?" Shinji looked up just in time to see a single figure fall from the air and smash him into the ground. There was a loud crash as Shinji was practically crushed between his fallen Servant partner who landed on him, unconscious. Shinji was also knocked unconscious by the impact.

Mordred fell more gracefully, landing on her feet next to me, brushing herself off.

Shinji and Francesca vanished in a brilliant light, no doubt being teleported to a recovery area now that they had sustained enough damage to be "retired" from the match.

"What did I say? It was a sure thing." Mordred's confidence hadn't faded one bit.

I smiled back at her. "You were right in the end. You are truly the greatest Servant, Mordred."

She stared at me, surprised for a moment before looking away. "W-Well DUH. I-I don't need you to tell me that, dumbass."

Then there was the sound of cheers.

I looked around the arena to see all of the people in the stands...cheering us on?

I frowned. "Huh?"

Mordred shrugged. "I guess after seeing what a slimeball that Matou guy was, I guess they changed their desired winner to be you. You pretty much fulfilled their desire for the match's outcome. I'll admit you were somewhat charismatic with all that 'achieving your dreams' stuff, so I guess the observers just liked that over Matou's status."

I smiled at her. "Well, none of this would've been possible without you choosing me as your Master, Mordred. I wouldn't have even qualified to stay at the academy in the first place." I turned towards her and bowed. "So thank you very much for becoming my partner, Mordred!"

"D-Dumbass! S-Stop saying such embarrassing things like that! I-It's not like I like hearing those kind of things!"

Before I could understand why she was getting so hostile, the announcements came on.

"_And while it was a very suspenseful fight, ultimately the winners are the team of Hakuno Kishinami and Mordred Pendragon! Let us once again applaud them on a fight well-fought and for their victory!"_

And on the Headmaster's order, the students and staff all once again began to applaud mine and Mordred's first Holy Grail War Battle.

And, as we basked in the amazing applause and cheers that had previously been boos, hopefully it would be the first of many victories.

* * *

**Elsewhere...(3rd Person POV)**

A small figure watched the outcome, glaring at the brown-haired Master.

"Hmph! So the upstart Master thinks he's a bigger star than me? The soon-to-be greatest idol?!" She growled at the cheery-looking Master. "We'll see about that."

* * *

**Elsewhere...**

"Quite the performance." Another female figure noted with a smile. "It was almost a work of art...Are you one who is worthy of being deemed 'Praetor'?"

She walked away, thinking over the fight she just watched.

She was just one of many people who had observed and had been touched by that match.

* * *

**A Secret Room Somewhere...**

"Hm. It appears an outcome that wasn't recorded in my data has occurred." A girl stated in a robotic yet slightly amused voice. She wore a a button-up dress shirt, black pants, and slippers. She was noticeably petite. "Kishinami Hakuno. This one fight has granted me a lot of much-needed data."

"Yeah yeah. I don't give a rat's ass really." A rougher voice stated as he looked at the results of the match. "So Mordred-kun was really that strong? I'm impressed." He grinned to himself, his sharp teeth giving him a beast-like grin. "If she gets stronger, I think I might want to fight her myself."

"Whatever gives me better data. I WILL achieve my goals." The girl stated in an almost disinterested tone. She sat in her seat, tossing about a small statue into the air as a means to entertain herself. She stared at the screen before her, a strange expression on her face. "Both Master and Servant types produce prana, but the 'Soul Organ' named Phantasm gives Servants an incredibly powerful ability that usually breaks the rule of standard craft but in return they can't do much other than use their Phantasms, while a Master can learn all sorts of spells. In the long run the one most likely to survive is the Master...and I will show this to this rotten world."

The man grinned again. "Whatever. As long as I can fight strong heroes, I don't care if you want to blow up the freaking moon. We DO have a contract after all."

The girl nodded before turning her attention back to the now-finished battle.

"Kishinami Hakuno, you are indeed an interesting specimen."

* * *

**Shinji's POV...**

I stomped away from the academy undetected later with Francesca following after me, extremely pissed about the results of that match.

I lost...

I lost...

GOD DAMMIT!

"How could I possibly lose to that low-class wretch?!"

Rider sighed. "We lost. You're just gonna have to accept it. We lost to a person who had more skill than us. Maybe next year we'll get luckier and end up against an opponent you can bully around."

I glared at her. "I'm not paying for you to agree with trash!"

Rider shrugged before patting me on the back, much to my annoyance. "Well, I suppose we ARE the ones who play the villains. But you had to admit that the kid had spirit."

I growled in annoyance. I was going to leave the academy before they could give me my notice of expulsion. I wouldn't give any of those bastards the satisfaction. Next year, I would-

"Where do you think you are going, Mr. Matou?" I turned and glared in the direction of the Headmaster as he approached. Apparently I was too late.

"What? You telling me to stay just so I can get expelled?"

The Headmaster smiled with amusement. What the Hell's so damn funny, old man!?

"No. I was telling you to stay so you can continue studying."

I frowned. "But...I lost the match. I'm expelled, aren't I?"

The Headmaster nodded. "You WOULD HAVE been expelled if Kishinami Hakuno hadn't approached me after the end of the match. He sincerely asked me to allow you to remain at the academy as well. Unlike others, he apparently sees a dream in you that you would like to see fulfilled as well. He didn't see it as his place to take that dream away. Therefore, taking his words under consideration, I've decided not to expel you. However, you WILL be under probation. I would like for you to keep from being involved in more unscrupulous activities."

I stared in shock and awe while Rider just grinned.

I...wasn't expelled?

Normally, I would be admittedly relieved, but that bastard...

He took pity on me. He kept me from getting expelled...He...He made me look like an absolute fool!

Damn you, Hakuno Kishinami! How dare you humiliate me like this?! I'll show you!

One day, I'll definitely crush you! I'll make you pay for this insult!

* * *

**Hakuno's POV...**

Mordred and I headed home after the school had dismissed for the day. Suffice to say, that while we still weren't the most popular, we were much less hated than we were before.

"So why did you do that?" Mordred asked me while we were walking. "Talk to the Headmaster about Matou, that is?"

I put my hands in my pockets. "Well, it's like I said. While I was fighting, I did see that Shinji was like you or me. Deep down, he does have a dream. He has just yet to realize what it is. I didn't want to be someone who crushed that dream so cruelly."

Mordred sighed, shaking her head. "God, you're WORSE than a hero-type! You're a goodie-two shoes! Of all the people I picked for my partner, why did I have to pick you, Hakuno!?"

I chuckled awkwardly. "Yeah, well-" I paused, having realized something. "You...You called me Hakuno." I stared at her in surprise.

Mordred raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? Hakuno's your name, isn't it?" She looked away, but I could've sworn I saw a slight pink on her face. "It'd only make sense to address my partner by his name, idiot."

I was still staring. "Yeah, but I kind of expected you to call me Ruruko, Zakuro, Komuro, or maybe Hakuro when you got real close."

Mordred clicked her tongue. "S-Shut-"

"S-Senpai!" A voice interrupted our conversation and I turned around to see a girl with familiar, violet hair girl poking her fingers together shyly.

I smiled at Sakura as she approached. "Ah, it's good to see you are okay, Sakura."

Idiot, why did I say something like that?! It wasn't like she was being targeted or attacked!

Sakura nodded, smiling slightly. "I-I'm happy that senpai won against Onii-sama. I...I'm glad you're-" There was then a sharp intake of breath. "Your arm!" Sakura looked at the arm I had injured during my fight against Shinji thanks to Francesca's cannons. Not gonna lie, I put on a brave face, but blocking the attack from a Noble Phantasm hurt like Hell. The nurses who treated me after the battle told me that trying to block a Noble Phantasm was the bravest yet STUPIDEST thing they had ever seen...And a few of them gave me their phone number for some reason. Weird.

Anyway, my arm was all bandaged up and I had various mild and severe fractures healed via magic in my hand. It was still bandaged up due to minor cuts and bruises that did not require any serious attention.

I nodded. "Yeah. It hurts a little, but it's not-"

"No!" Sakura stated firmly, her face still a slight shade of pink. "Senpai got hurt because he was defending me!"

I rubbed the back of my neck. "It's really not too ba-"

"Therefore, until he gets better, I'll help take care of him!"

"That's really not necessar-"

"I'll be by later tonight so I can cook dinner, Senpai!"

"Well that's nice and all, but-"

"I will make it up to you for getting you hurt, Senpai!" Sakura said determinedly.

"This is feeling horribly one-sided."

Rather than answer, Sakura ran off, excited for some reason, leaving me confused and staring off into the direction she ran in.

"What was that about?" I asked to myself. Then I turned to Mordred and asked her. "What was that about?"

Mordred placed a hand on her forehead and shook her head, muttering "Idiot." under her breath. Apparently she understood something I didn't.

I blinked. "Eh?"

"Whatever. I just hope her cooking is delicious." Mordred then walked off towards...the direction of...my house...Apparently she was staying over. Well, no harm in letting her stay, I suppose...

I blinked again. "Seriously, what just happened?" Then another thought. "And more importantly. Why does Sakura keep calling me 'Senpai'? We're in the same year."

"_It's a sign that she likes you."_ I jumped at the voice that appeared out of nowhere. _"Her happiness is most important to me. If you hurt her in ANY WAY, I will fill you with knives and rip your body apart."_

I felt a chill go down my spine at the mysterious voice. I spun around, trying to catch the speaker, but nobody was around.

OK...Creepy.

The presence I felt before had vanished...Could it have been a Servant I wonder?

...Just who was it talking about? She (as the voice sounded female) said _her_...Who WAS the _her_ it spoke of?

**Aaaaaaaand END CHAPTER! Longer than the first chapter and a bit much for a second chapter buuuuuuut-oh well.**

**Also, those of you who submitted OCs...yeah. The OCs who you thought were yours were indeed yours.**

**Shuren was indeed yours, Elkath~! I hope I portrayed him to your liking. DragonXDelinquent, I know what you're asking mentally and YES, that was indeed THEM. Congrats you two for having your OCs get in.**

**Speaking of OC's, I'm still accepting. Here's the format:**

******For Masters:**

**Name: **

**Age: **

**Gender: **

**Alignment: **

**Affiliation:**

**Appearance: **

**Personality:**

**Abilities:**

**Bio (Not mandatory):**

**Servants...**

**Class:**

**Master: **

**True Name:**

**Gender: **

**Alignment: **

**Appearance: **

**Personality: **

**Stats: (From E to A, E being the worst, A being the highest)**

**Strength:**

**Endurance: **

**Agility:**

**Magical Energy:**

**Luck:**

**Noble Phantasm (Rank):**

**Class Abilities:**

**Personal Skills:**

**Noble Phantasms:**

**Please send to your hearts content. For Servants, I ask that they either be made as REAL heroes or related to real heroes. That is preferable.**

**Thanks for the reads and reviews~!**

**Bye-Bye~!**


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